Professor of Sociology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Professor Charles Kurzman is a specialist on Islamic movements at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA. He has carried out research in Iran, Turkey, Europe, the United States, and Mexico, and is currently working on studying the recruitment difficulties of Islamist revolutionaries. (excerpts)

Fellow of Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies, Durham University

Dr. Christopher Davidson is a policy expert on the Gulf monarchies and specializes in the field of Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies. Having lived and worked in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Sharjah, and Beirut, Dr. Davidson has an extensive knowledge of this region of the world.

Former US ambassador to the Netherlands

Ambassador Cynthia P. Schneider is currently a Distinguished Professor in the Practice of Diplomacy at the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University and a Senior Non-resident Fellow at the Brookings Institution leading the Arts and Culture Initiative within the Saban Center for Middle East Policy. She was the US Ambassador to the Netherlands from 1998-2001 and a professor of Art History at Georgetown University for many years.

Daniel Levy is a Senior Research Fellow and Co-Director of the Middle East Task Force at the New America Foundation and a Senior Fellow and Director of the Prospects for Peace Initiative at The Century Foundation. He is former special advisor and head of Jerusalem Affairs for the Israeli Prime Minister.